DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters, except for Matthew and Moxie. The rest of them belong to James Duff and the Major Crimes franchise.

A/N: Sorry for such a delay in between postings. Real life has gotten in the way here and I had to take care of a couple of things. Thanks for your patience and understandings. There will be one more chapter after this one, and then a possible new story that I have a certain idea for.

Chapter 15

Andy pulled the car into the driveway and parked it in the garage. He met Sharon at the door and walked with her up to the house. It was almost bed time for Matthew and Sharon had hoped that he was at least wearing his pajamas. Andy unlocked the door and they both stepped inside, Sharon moving to the kitchen and Andy locking up behind them.

Sharon walked into the kitchen and placed her purse down on the counter. Andy walked up behind her and placed his arms around her, pulling her back into his chest. "Thank you for coming with me tonight," he whispered into her ear. "You're welcome," she looked up at him and smiled. He let go of her and she made her way into the family room.

Andy stayed in the kitchen and got a glass down from the cabinet, filling it with some orange juice from the fridge. Sharon stepped into the family room and found Emily, Matthew, and Rusty all watching television. She cleared her throat to get their attention. "Mom, you're home," Emily quickly turned the television off. Matthew looked up at Sharon and knew she was mad because he was still grounded from watching television.

"Matthew, is your homework all finished?" she asked him as he got up off the couch. "Yes," he said as he gave her a hug. "Okay, let's go over it together," she told him and led him into the dining room where she had seen his backpack and school items. Rusty looked over at Emily and cringed. "See, told you it was a bad move to let him watch TV with us," he told her, standing up from his chair and cleaning up the bowl of popcorn.

"She'll get over it," Emily muttered to him and grabbed the glasses off of the coffee table and took them into the kitchen. "Hey, how was dinner?" Andy asked Rusty and Emily as they walked into the kitchen carrying their items. "Oh, it was fun," Rusty said. "Oh really? Where did you go?" Andy asked them, wondering where the three of them went.

"Chuck E Cheese," Rusty smiled and Andy laughed. "You guys went to Chuck E Cheese?" he chuckled. "What's wrong with that?" Emily wondered as she placed the glasses in the sink. "Nothing's wrong with it, I just thought you guys were a little too old for that place," Andy placed his hands on his hips. "Well, your son chose that place and we had a good time," Emily stated.

"Yeah, both Matthew and I beat Emily at the skee-ball game," Rusty said, proud of that achievement and wanted to rub it in Emily's face again. "Oh yes, ha ha, so you won at some game," Emily teased him and Andy watched the two of them go back and forth. "Okay, enough guys. Did Matthew enjoy it?" Andy wondered about if he had a good time.

"He had a blast, oh and just for the record, it was Emily's idea that Matthew could watch TV with us tonight when we got home," Rusty told Andy and he gave him a look. "Good night all," Rusty walked out of the kitchen and closed the back door behind him. Andy then looked at Emily, and knew that if Sharon walked in on them all watching TV, when Matthew was supposed to still be grounded, she probably wasn't going to be happy.

"How did your session go, you know, with the shrink?" Emily asked him. "Um, fine, it went fine, thanks for asking," he answered her and started to walk towards the dining room. "Well, I'm going to head upstairs, I got a big day ahead of me tomorrow," Emily told him. "Oh yeah, that's right, good luck with your audition tomorrow," Andy told her and stepped into the dining room to see Sharon going over Matthew's homework with him.

He leaned against the door frame, watching her check his math homework. She pointed at some problem on the paper and Matthew started erasing whatever it was and then wrote down a new answer. As he was doing this, Sharon glanced up and looked at Andy. She gave him a small smile and he smiled back at her. "I'm going to take Moxie out one more time before we head to bed," he informed her and then grabbed the leash and called the dog's name.

Moxie came running into the kitchen from where ever he was sleeping and Andy placed the leash on the dog and took him out for a short walk from the driveway to the front sidewalk. On the walk, he thought about what Doctor Peters said about being afraid of losing Sharon. "Well who wouldn't be?" he mumbled to himself as he walked Moxie along the sidewalk. Moxie did his business and they started to head back inside the house.

Andy locked up the back door once inside the house and made his way through the kitchen to the dining room but Sharon and Matthew were not there anymore. Andy sighed and walked towards the family room, still not seeing them. "I guess they went upstairs," he muttered to the dog and then Moxie ran up the stairs before Andy.

Sharon was in Matthew's room. He was in bed and she was sitting on the edge of it. "I never did get a chance to ask you how your session with Doctor Joe went today," she spoke softly as he laid there. "It was okay," he shrugged his shoulders. "Just okay?" she asked him. She was giving him the opportunity to talk about it.

"We talked about when you and Daddy were looking for me. Do you remember that day?" he asked her as Sharon sat on his bed. "I do remember that day. I remember that Daddy and I and the rest of the team were searching for you because we wanted you to be safe. And when we found you in that house by yourself, with Moxie, I was relieved," she told him.

"Why were you relieved?" he asked as he hugged his teddy bear. "Well, because I knew as soon as we found you, that you would be safe and wouldn't be out on your own anymore," she smiled, pushing his hair back from his eyes. "Your hair is getting long, I think it might be time for a haircut soon," she stated as she moved her hand away from his head.

"We talked about my adoption too," he muttered and Sharon nodded. "What about it?" she wondered if he had any questions. "Just that you and Daddy love me and that was a big reason in why you adopted me," he said into his teddy bear. "Matthew, you know that we do love you very much and we wanted you to be a part of our family, don't ever doubt that," she told him as he sat up. Moxie came into the room and jumped on the bed, settling down next to Matthew.

Sharon gave Matthew a smile and kissed his forehead. "Good night sweetie," she told him. "Night Mom," he told her. Andy stood at the door frame and walked in Matthew's room. "Good night kiddo," he told him. "Night Dad," Matthew gave him a small wave and turned over to pet Moxie. Andy looked at Sharon as she walked out of the room.

"I just want to speak to Emily for a little bit, I'll be there in just a moment," she told him, running her hand down his tie. "Sure," he nodded and watched her walk towards the guest room. He, in turn, walked into their bedroom and got himself ready for bed.

Sharon knocked softly on the guest room door. "Emily?" she opened the door slightly to see Emily in bed, listening to music with her headphones. She smiled as she walked inside and sat down on the edge of her bed. Emily pulled her earphones out of her ears. "Listening to your music for tomorrow?" she asked her. "Yes, trying to get into the mood of the song," Emily told her as she sat up in bed.

"Thank you for taking Matthew out for dinner tonight," Sharon told her. "Oh, not a big deal Mom. We had a lot of fun," Emily said. "Were you mad that Matthew was watching TV with us when you guys got home?" she asked her and Sharon didn't know how to answer that. "Well, at first I was because I told you that Matthew was not allowed to watch TV because he was grounded from that, but I also thought it was good that he has some good bonding time with you and Rusty, and Ricky when he comes to visit," Sharon showed mixed emotions as she told this to Emily.

"How was Andy's session tonight?" Emily inquired since when she asked Andy before, he really didn't say much about it. "It was good. I think it helped a little with him," Sharon told her but she wasn't going to go into details about it. "Good night Mom," Emily gave her a hug and laid back down on the bed. "Good night, my sweetheart," Sharon sighed and stood up from the bed, walked out and closed the door behind her.

As Sharon entered their bedroom, Andy was in the bathroom, standing over the sink. His shirt was off and he was wearing his pajama pants. The sight brought a smile to her lips and she walked over to him. Andy was brushing his teeth when he saw Sharon saunter over to him. He finished up and patted a towel over his face.

Sharon looked him over and saw the various scars that were on his chest, shoulders, and arms. She lightly touched over them with her fingers, looking into his eyes as she did so. "Did tonight help you?" she asked him. "Yeah it did," he nodded and reveled in her touch. "Good, I'm glad," she said and walked out of the bathroom and into their closet to change out of her clothes.

She left Andy there, standing, pulling on his earlobe. He shook his head, took one more look at himself in the mirror, and walked back into the bedroom. He tossed a t-shirt over his head as Sharon was changing her clothes. She walked into the bathroom and finished getting ready. She started putting lotion on her arms and legs. Andy would never get tired of watching her do that.

He climbed into bed and waited for her to be done. She turned off the bathroom light and the bedroom light, leaving the light on the nightstand on. She climbed into bed and settled into Andy's left side. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him. They laid there for a couple of minutes, not talking.

"I wouldn't be fine if I lost you," Sharon said, breaking the silence in the room. Andy turned his head to look at her. "You said you know I'd be fine without you, that I would be able to go on and continue every day," Sharon sighed as she nuzzled her head into the crook of his shoulder. Andy just laid there, listening to her. "I wouldn't be fine. I love you with all of my heart, and if by any chance, something did happen to you, and you were no longer here with me, it would be a struggle for me too," she confessed to him.

Andy pulled her closer and whispered into her ear. "I'm sorry babe, that I made it seem that you would go on without caring about me," he held her and she sniffled into his shoulder. "I didn't mean to downplay the thought of losing me that you would go on as if nothing happened, that wasn't my intent at all, and I'm sorry," he told her as she moved her head and kissed his neck, where the scar from his blood clot surgery was located.

She closed her eyes, inhaling the scent of him, which brought her a sense of calm. "You know eventually, it will happen, one of us is going to leave the other one, not by choice," she told him. "I'm hoping that isn't for a very long time, Sharon," he said as he rubbed his hand up and down her arm. "Me too," she whispered and closed her eyes again. There was silence again for a couple of minutes before Andy spoke.

"Is our marriage okay?" he muttered as he held her close to him. He could tell she was still awake, even if her eyes were closed at this point. "Hmm," Sharon mumbled as she placed her hand on his chest. "Andy, we both know what a bad marriage can be like, and I think that our marriage to each other is a normal, healthy, marriage. We agree and disagree on certain things, we talk through them, and we make up. We enjoy each other's company, and know when the other person is hurting. We want to bring comfort and joy to each other and protection, so to answer your question, Andrew Flynn, yes, our marriage is more than okay," Sharon leaned over and kissed his lips.

"I love you," he interrupted their kissing to tell her that. She kissed him again. "I love you too," she broke apart and smiled at him. She laid her head back down on his shoulder and he resumed rubbing his hand gently up and down her left side. She was able to relax and so did he, drifting off to a better night's sleep.

Friday and the weekend went by quickly and suddenly it was Monday morning. Sharon woke up to Andy already in the shower. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand and saw that it was 5:45 in the morning. She rubbed her eyes to get the sleep out and unwrapped herself from the lone bed sheet. She leaned over and grabbed her robe, tying it around her body as she stood up and walked over to their closet.

She wanted to wear something comfortable, yet business like since after her tests and doctor's appointment, they were most likely heading into the office. She heard Andy turn the water off and the glass door opening so she knew he was finished with his shower. The door to the bathroom opened and Andy walked out, wearing a towel around his waist. As he stepped around the corner, he saw Sharon figuring out what to wear and he smiled.

She caught his eye as she glanced over at him and returned his smile. "Did the shower wake you?" he asked her, in a low voice as he made his way past her to pick out some clothes. "No, I don't know what woke me but I saw that you were already up and then I glanced at the clock and decided that I probably needed to get myself ready," she told him as she brought her clothes with her to the bathroom.

He looked over the different suits he had hanging up and wanted to wear something nice, but casual to her doctor's appointment. He wanted to surprise her after her tests and everything and had already arraigned with Provenza that they would not be coming in after she was done with her doctor's appointment. However, she didn't know that.

Picking out a nice pair of jeans and a button down shirt would give his plans of not going into the office away as soon as she would see him. He started to get dressed in a pair of boxers and a white t-shirt. He heard the shower turn off and knew that Sharon would be getting herself dressed in the bathroom. He decided to open the door, slightly to see what type of outfit she was wearing to her appointment.

Sharon looked over at him as the door opened and she was standing in front of the mirror, wearing her robe. Steam was still in the air from her shower and he gave her his sheepish smile. "Yes?" she said to him in her usual manner. "Oh, nothing," he said as he looked at her. She titled her head at him and knew that he was keeping something in the back of his mind.

Andy looked around the bathroom to see if he could tell what clothes she was going to wear as Sharon tended to herself. "Um, what outfit were you going to wear this morning?" he asked her. "Hmm, well, I wanted to wear something comfortable but also appropriate for working later," she told him and he wasn't surprised that she wanted to go into the office after she was done with her appointment.

"Well, may I suggest something a little on the casual side?" he offered her, and he thought that if she wore something casual, that would allow him to wear casual as well. Sharon looked at him again, and shook her head. "Are you planning something, Andy?" she asked as she turned around fully to speak to him.

"Uh," he paused as he looked at her eyes. He couldn't lie to her, but he still wanted to surprise her, even if she didn't totally like surprises. "Well, I know you don't like surprises," he started to tell her and was surprised when she didn't object as soon as he said that. "But, I wanted to take you somewhere after your doctor's appointment and your tests, just so that, you know, you and I can be us," he said, hoping she wouldn't object to his suggestion.

"Hmm? Does Provenza know you plan on not returning me to work after my appointment this morning?" she asked as she walked closer to him and ran her hand up his back. "I took care of it, babe," he muttered as she laid her head on his chest and he circled his arms around her. She settled into his arms. "I think that sounds wonderful," she told him and he smiled.

"Then, maybe after a week or so, depending on how work goes, maybe you and I can get away for a little bit," Andy said as he rubbed his hands up and down her back. She hummed at the thought of the two of them being able to get away. "That sounds great as well but, what about Matthew?" she asked as she moved her head to look up at him.

"We could either take him with us on a trip, or I could talk to Nicole and see if he could stay overnight with them," Andy suggested and Sharon thought about it. "Hmm, well before we decide, we should sit down with him, just the three of us and talk about some things," she walked away from him to continue getting herself ready for the day.

"Like what exactly?" Andy asked her as he watched her start to fix her hair. "We talked about some of the things that Doctor Joe and he have discussed last night while you were taking Moxie out," Sharon brushed her hair. "Oh, are things going okay?" Andy asked as he leaned up against the wall to watch her. "I think so. He's making some progress, I think," she turned to him, giving him a small smile, and finished fixing her hair and getting dressed.

Andy nodded and turned around to go back to their closet and picked out what he had wanted to wear in the first place: his jeans, button-down dress shirt, and his leather jacket. After he was dressed, and while Sharon was still getting herself ready, he walked across the hallway and knocked on Matthew's door, opening it slightly, seeing the light was already on and his bed was empty.

"Matthew?" he called out and then saw Moxie walk over to him, wagging his tail. "Hey buddy," he patted the dog on his head as he walked further into the room. He then noticed Matthew in his closet, sitting on the floor. Andy stood there watching him for a brief second before he knelt down in front of him. "You okay, kiddo?" he asked him and Matthew looked up at Andy.

"Yeah, I was just sitting here, thinking about stuff," he said as he stood up, still in his pajamas. "Uh, like what?" he asked him, and moved to the side. "I remember the day when you and Mommy found me, Doctor Joe asked me about that day, and I was just thinking about it again," Matthew said and moved to get his school uniform together.

"I remember that day," Andy stood up and walked to the chair in Matthew's room and sat down. "When we found you, you clung to my side and didn't want me to leave," he continued as Matthew stood there. Andy sat there for a few minutes before he stood up and walked over to where Matthew was standing. "Go get dressed and ready for school, Mommy has a doctor's appointment this morning, so we need to leave on time today," Andy patted him on his back and Matthew took his uniform into the bathroom down the hall.

Andy saw Sharon walk out of their room and he took a deep breath as he looked at her. "You look amazing," he whispered to her as he walked over and grabbed her hands in his. "Thank you," she smiled, biting her lower lip, a nervous habit of hers that still drove Andy crazy all this time. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Matthew's getting himself ready, why don't you head downstairs and I'll make us all breakfast," he said and she nodded to him.

"First I want to make sure Emily is up," she told him and he stood there in the hallway watching her walk to the guest room. He turned his head and saw Moxie standing there, wagging his tail. "Come on," he said to the dog and they both went downstairs.

Sharon knocked on Emily's door. "Come in," she heard as she opened the door to the guest bedroom. "Hey sweetie," Sharon moved closer to Emily's bed. "I just wanted to make sure you're up and wish you luck this morning," she leaned down and kissed Emily's forehead. "You're going to do great!" she told her and Emily smiled.

"Thanks Mom," she yawned as she stretched her arms over her head. "Good luck today with your test," Emily told her as she watched her walked back towards the door. Sharon smiled and nodded. She was still nervous about this test but didn't want to let Emily know that. "Andy said he's making breakfast if you want some," she told her, but Emily declined. Sharon stepped out of the room and saw Matthew walking down the hallway towards his room.

"Are you almost ready?" she said, which startled him. "Yes," he quickly said and ran into his room, dropping his clothes on his bed and shutting the lights off. He met Sharon by the stairs and they both went downstairs and towards the kitchen.

Andy was standing by the stove cooking scrambled eggs when Sharon and Matthew joined him. Matthew walked over to the counter and brought the juice container over to the table. "Thank you," Sharon told him as she watched him while Andy placed the scrambled eggs into a serving bowl. "Andy, you made enough eggs here for an army!" Sharon's eyes widened at the sight. Andy chuckled as he handed the bowl to Sharon.

He waited for the toast to be ready before he joined the rest of them at the kitchen table. "Is Emily joining us?" he asked Sharon as she took a piece of toast from the plate. "No, she gets in the zone before an audition and its good luck trying to break her out of it," Sharon explained. "Sounds like someone else I know," Andy said as he ate.

TBC